Lillian Lincoln Lambert

When I arrived in Kansas City for a seven-day stay, my thought upon arrival was “Seven days is probably too long” Little did I know how fast the time would pass and how busy I would be.

I arrived on a Wed and had a quiet, relaxing evening at the home of my sister and brother-in-law, where we stayed. A week of planned and unplanned activities began the following day. It was as if KC was waiting for me. I met so many exciting people from friends of my in-laws, to friends of school classmates and even connected with a classmate from Harvard Business School whom, until our class reunion last fall, I had not seen since 1969. I also reconnected with a business colleague from my days as a business owner whom I had not seen in 15-20 years. The restaurants we visited were exceptional, all serving more food than I could possibly eat.

My book signing event was a phenomenal success – about 300 in attendance at the he KC Plaza Branch library. This library is housed in an old bank building with marble and dark mahogany throughout. The event was in an up-to-date auditorium with latest technology (most of which I did not need) with comfortable cushioned chairs. Sponsors for the event were The Links of Greater Kansas, Howard University Alumni and the Library. My sister-in-law, the initiator, was a PR genius and acquired the name “the email queen”. Some told me they saw my picture in so many places they thought I was running for office. A reception with tasty hors d’oeuvres and two young men playing jazz preceded the book signing. Things were flowing smoothly until Barnes & Noble ran out of books about 10 minutes after they started selling. I’m beginning to think they are not the booksellers for me. With the exception of one event, they have run out of books every time even when it was suggested to have a larger inventory. Too often if the book is not available at the event people tend not to order it or buy later.

Other activities included short presentations at two church services, a book discussion with a book club, a radio interview and meetings with the Kauffman Foundation and the Henry Bloch School of Business, University of Missouri, Kansas City. These meeting were very fruitful, offering some possible business ventures.

Because I was so busy, I needed to return home in order to get some rest. Overall the trip was a booming success!

My two-month book tour ended Mar 31. I came home, crashed for a couple of days and got some rest and relaxation. I was thankful for the opportunities to be so involved in Black History and Women’s History Month programs.

My induction into the Enterprising Women Magazine Hall of Fame on Mar 18 was in the beautiful, relaxing environment of the Doral Spa Resort, Miami, FL. Entrepreneurs as well as corporate & non-profit executives shared experiences. It offered great networking. The beautiful plague presented to me now graces the wall at my home.

I was honored to have been invited to be the keynote speaker for The Women’s History Month luncheon of the National Association of Negro Business & Professional Women on Mar 20 in Petersburg, VA. The invitation was extended by the young woman who was my first administrative assistant at my company in the late 70’s. We connected a couple years ago after about 20 years.

Because I was in Miami March 17-19 and a commitment for a speaking engagement on March 20, I was unable to fully participate in the Virginia Festival of the Book held March 17-21 in Charlottesville, VA. I did attend a luncheon and book signing hosted by The Links of Charlottesville and a book signing at Barnes & Noble on Mar. 21.
March 25-28 found me in the Washington, DC area. Bowie State University, Bowie, MD, hosted its second annual tea & book discussion. It was a delightful event in a beautiful setting decorated with flowers, streamers, and balloons and offered a wide selection of teas, tasty scones and tea sandwiches. The interview with me was conducted by a journalism student. A highlight of the day was being surprised by five former employees who live in the area. Earlier in the day I had a glorious experience – conducting a class in leadership for upperclassmen. It reminded me of my teaching days at Bowie and it felt good!

The Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship at University of Maryland, College Park, MD was my host on Mar 26 for a discussion with students, faculty and staff.

Sunday, Mar 28 found me at the Oxon Hill Library, Oxon Hill, MD as the keynote speaker for the Women’s History Month program sponsored by Association for the Study of African American Life and History and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. Having lived in Prince George’s County, MD for about 30 years, I was grateful to be able to reconnect with many people I knew from my days of living there.

The evening of Mar. 30, East Orange City Hall, East Orange, NJ was a booming success even with the torrential rainfall. My brother lives in East Orange and a friend of his hosted me as the keynote speaker for its Women History Month Program. Many relatives and even people I went to school with in Powhatan, VA attended.

My last stop of the month, Mar 31, was in Stamford, CT for the Women’s History Month program for UBS Financial Services. I was invited by a woman I had met at another speaking engagement a few months earlier. It’s a great feeling to be referred as a speaker. This event was limited to employees, many whom had already read my book. A real plus was the company had purchased books for each person in attendance. We had a wonderful discussion.